


Now

by serafina19



Category: 12 Monkeys (TV)
Genre: F/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-11
Updated: 2018-07-11
Packaged: 2019-06-08 04:11:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15235023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/serafina19/pseuds/serafina19
Summary: Time had given and taken away from Cassie and Cole, but in the end, it gave them something they never expected.





	Now

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, the finale was perfect as is. But after watching it, I couldn't shake this idea, so I just started writing, hoping this might add a nice little cherry to that final scene. And I'm posting it before I change my mind, so it's probably a bit unpolished and I apologize in advance if there are any errors.

Cassie opened the door of her home, watching as the colours of the sunset began to fill the sky. It was a habit she picked up ever since she moved here, a reminder of the life she had to leave behind.

It hurt less than it did before, but not because of her memory. She still remembered how those moments came flooding back to her after closing her car door that fateful day. She remembered her anticipation as she turned her head towards her back seat, hoping to see someone who wasn't there. She remembered the pain of what and who she had lost, remembered how she had sworn quietly for letting Cole convince her to make that decision, to allow him to erase himself. Mostly because he was right.

It was better this way, remembering what was real, but that didn't stop the pain of that loss. Still, she took what she could get through buying the house, using the surrounding area to find a new way to live her life. She had already saved the world, so she enjoyed saving one patient at a time at a small clinic down the road. The days went by and she was learning to accept this reality as her new life, but she refused to forget him. She had no pictures and the memories might fade one day, but the sunset, that was something she could rely on and it reminded her of one of their last moments together. It also reminded her of a ring she barely got to wear, but that didn’t stop her from stroking that finger, as she remembered what it felt like when it was there.

She said it wasn’t enough then, but deep down, it was. It was what he could give her and she would always be grateful for that.

 

**~0~**

 

Jennifer had left him a car, so he got inside ready to find Cassie, hoping she had found her way back to that house. Part of him wouldn’t have blamed her if she had let herself find a different life. After all, he didn’t even ask what year he had dropped in. But he kept driving, hoping for the best. After all, he never expected to see Cassie again, so any moment he could have with her would mean the world to him, even if it only lasted a second.

The miles flew by, the irony of the red surrounding him as he got closer not lost on him. The car stopped running at some point, but it didn’t faze him. It could have been out of gas, maybe a broken part, but James got out of the car and started walking.

For he knew this road better than most and it hadn’t changed since he was last here.

 

**~0~**

 

As she took a familiar place on the porch steps, she moved her hand up to feel the watch that brought them together. No matter what happened, she found peace in watching the sunset, which is why it never felt wrong to say, “See you soon,” every day.

Even if he never came, the fact remained that he saved her life. He had helped her discover parts of herself that she didn’t think existed and they worked together to ensure a future that she couldn't have experienced if she had never met him. Even if he couldn’t join her, they saved a world that was falling apart, that was dying in many ways. Now, the sun would set and she could feel optimistic about tomorrow.

 

**~0~**

 

When he saw her sitting on the steps, his disbelief settled in once more. He had to admit it was nice, knowing he could just stand there, let time stand still as he let his relief wash over him. She was here, looking as beautiful as the day they last saw each other. There was hope in her eyes, her back straight and something in the way that she stared at the sunset that took his breath away.

 

**~0~**

 

Her head turned and time stopped. She wasn’t sure how he was standing in front of her home, but she didn’t care. Even if it was a cruel trick, a hallucination, she welcomed it because it allowed her to remember his face.

But she knew this was real. The way he looked at her, the way he stood there. She knew it wasn’t fake, so she stood up and approached him, finding further relief and a quicker pace to her steps as he followed suit.

 

**~0~**

 

All this time, they believed they had to choose between saving the world and saving each other. They stayed apart for that reason, the world almost ended for that reason, but it turned out they could have both, thanks to a little help from their friends.

He had travelled through time and experienced more in his life than most, but the idea of living a regular life had never been within his grasp for long. Even the last time they were at this house, it was never as easy as just being Cassie and Cole.

Now, it looked like they had a chance to be Cassie and _James_ , to maybe be the Coles for real one day. That had a good ring to it.

But right now, all he could focus on was the way her eyes lit up when she saw him, the distance between them erasing as they walked closer together. Once their feet stopped moving, she put her hand on his cheek, saying nothing but he could tell this moment meant as much to her as it did to him. So he wrapped his arms around her as she did the same and the world felt right. Life felt right.

 

**~0~**

 

As she embraced him, Cassie realized that it wasn't until now that she really understood what he meant at Titan. That feeling of finding him again, of having _now_ , of something real, this was the reward for everything they had sacrificed. It may have an ending one day, but the fact that it hadn’t come yet, the fact that they had now, that was truly enough.

 

**~End~**


End file.
